LExpectations are rarely met. At this time of year, such realizations come more frequently. Yes, you’re fatter, poorer, wrinkled, and read less than you’d like. A momentary desire that I had in high school, that I might travel the world, that I might make a difference. Unfortunately, for most, that optimism was misplaced.
So when a cricket match results in a result that is far beyond the fans’ imaginations, it’s worth celebrating. There is no doubt that the Boxing Day Test was one of the greatest moments in sport. Australia’s most culturally significant annual sporting event. Two rivals come together and the rise and fall continues until the final hours of the final day. While this victory will forever be remembered by captain Pat Cummins and his colleagues, this loss will definitely motivate the new generation of Indian cricketers.
Just today, the Guardian published a list of Australia’s 10 biggest sporting moments of 2024. My calendar didn’t allow for that, but the article had to wait another day. This five-day cricket spectacle was at times more entertaining than Raygun. It’s fresher than gout. Tougher than the blues. Craftier than a fox. Certainly more unpredictable than Engiball.
The brilliance of the match lasted for a very long time and this article is being written about 15 hours after the final wicket fell. Yet if this headline and its accompanying image evoke something irresistible in Australians, people will still come read. The world should have moved forward. But this ordeal will remain long in the hearts of those who witnessed the ball.
I had many such thoughts. A total of 373,691 people attended the MCG over the five days, a number “more than Bradman” and the most attended Test in at least the era of Australia’s biggest promoter.
These days, Test cricket is played in front of empty stadiums in most countries. For now, the red ball remains a feature of the international calendar and the game’s purest form of prestige. But to put it simply, not many people come to see it.
In that sense, the turnout was extraordinary. The Boxing Day Test is traditionally Australia’s most popular Test of the summer, but it has only attracted 200,000 people five times in the past 40 years. The match attracted over 100,000 more people than the next-highest attendance for the Ashes in 2013, which was 272,000.
But its status as the most-attended Test in Australian history has special meaning. This is no longer just a British outpost where defeating your nemesis is the sport’s most appealing motivation. Now, a new frenemy has appeared in modern Australia.
Much of the fluttering flags, drumming, and constant noise came from the blue-clad Indians who had exiled themselves to Australia. This crowning glory of cricket would not be complete without contagious enthusiasm.
This amplified the drama of five days in which what seemed like a decisive moment turned decisive. When Yashasvi Jaiswal, perhaps India’s greatest batsman after Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli, frustrated the home team by dulling the new ball in a wicketless second session on the fifth day. Sam Constas’ feats on debut seemed like a lifetime ago.
The 19-year-old failed in his second Test innings, but still had the courage to bark mercilessly against a majestic opponent. It was unbecoming, a throwback to the captaincy of Australian cricket before Cummins, and an entirely convincing one.
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Constas’ fatal naivety was just one of the character studies that enriched the five days. India captain Rohit Sharma deflated in the hours after Christmas like a sprinkled ham. The legend is now firmly on the verge of fading away. Impulsive Kohli fights Father Time, who has set up camp outside the stumps.
And the freshness of Jaiswal and his rags-to-riches story. Or Nitish Kumar Reddy, who bowed at the feet of Sunil Gavaskar and his father, whose meeting with Indian royalty was made possible only by his son’s first Test century.
On the final day, intimacy was brought about by drama. Jaiswal’s silent thumb, how Nathan Ryan changed his mind after driving away, Boland, always about Scotty Boland. And Cummins, the catalyst and conductor, was never far away from playing the game that would secure his legacy.
Every day is accelerated by AI daemons, ping notifications, and low-orbit satellites. The slow humanity of this test was like an unneeded glass of water. Uncles and aunts come and go during the holidays, but Steve Smith is forever. And what’s best of all? Another test awaits.
